Every church tells a story or two. The architecture, ornaments, sculpture and names on the gravestones, pews, floors of the nave, plaques and sarcophagi on display nurture seeds of knowledge – sketches of social history.

If the Brigadier General was interred inside the church yet his grandson was buried in the churchyard years later, maybe the family fell on hard times? Until the early 19th century only the notable (church benefactors, in fact), determined to be as close as possible to Christian piety, were buried inside the church. Not every body could be accommodated. Thereafter burial under the church floor was deemed insanitary; the smells were not that of incense! Hence, the origin of the term, according to the National Churches Trust, “stinking rich”. Good story?

Another enlightening church tale hails from the Church of St Michael and All Angels in Berwick, East Sussex. The church is resplendent with murals painted by Bloomsbury group members Duncan Grant, Vanessa Bell and Vanessa’s son, Quentin, who all lived at Charleston, a farmhouse nearby. This artistic achievement came about because during the Second World War bombs damaged some of the church’s decorative stained glass windows. Rather than replace the stained glass, the Bishop of Chichester commissioned these artists to cover the walls with biblical scenes; the Sussex landscape is evoked; the models come from the locality, even the breed of sheep. The clear glass filling the windows allows light to filter in, illuminating the murals; and this is certainly a marvel to behold.

A most interesting ecclesiastical page-turner in Central London is St Bride’s, Fleet Street. This illustrious church, a stunning edifice designed by Sir Christopher Wren, has quite a distinguishing feature. For St Bride’s is known as the journalists’ church. Many people working in the press, printers and journalists alike, used to worship here when their offices and print works were located nearby in Fleet Street and the streets branching off. For several hundred years, Fleet Street was the ‘avenue’ of the manufacturing industry of the word. Incidentally, there was one rector, Prebendary Arthur Taylor, who had, unusually for a rector, a deep knowledge of printing and publishing. This was because he was a secretary of the Bible Society, which sends the printed – and now digital – gospel all over the world in every language. He served St Bride’s from 1918 until 1951.

The church still has strong links with members of the industry, some of whom still come to worship there, venturing often from far away. It holds an annual journalists’ carol service for all those working in the media industry, and a Remembrance Day service for them as well, commemorating the ones who have lost their lives in the line of duty. Readers are people who work in the industry. Both services are extremely well attended. Arrive early!

In the church’s journalists’ chapel, there are portraits on the altar of journalists who have died in the course of their work. Information underneath each picture details who they are and how they lost their lives. There are so many portraits for display, so the church ‘alternates’ them. One of the portraits shown is of Daniel Pearl, The Wall Street Journal correspondent who was beheaded in Pakistan in 2002. His gruesome death shocked the world. Another face is that of The Sunday Times journalist Marie Colvin. In 2010, she gave an address during a service to commemorate war reporters who had died since 2000. Two years later Colvin herself was killed during the slaughter of Homs, a city under siege at the time by the Syrian government. Another portrait is that of Jamal Khashoggi, the prominent Saudi journalist who was killed inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. He was a contributor to the opinion page of The Washington Post. In the 1990s vigils were held for journalists John McCarthy and Terry Anderson, and Terry Waite, then the Archbishop of Canterbury’s international envoy, while they were being held as hostages in Lebanon.

The genesis of publishing in the church’s area began when the German immigrant Wynkyn de Worde, a pupil of William Caxton (known as the “first printer”), established a printing press near St Bride’s, in Shoe Lane, around 1500. Wynkyn is credited as being the first printer to use italic type. Another notable printer, Richard Pynson, who was born in France, also set up shop at the time, nearer to St Paul’s Cathedral, a short stroll away from St Bride’s. Pynson is credited with introducing Roman type to English printing. He was King’s Printer to King Henry VII and King Henry VIII. Both printers published works featuring a broad range of literary genres, such as romances, religious works, school textbooks and poetry. Other publishers and printers, following their lead, established themselves in the area. Some supplied texts for the legal world at the four Inns of Court nearby and catered for the fictional tastes of an increasing population of literate members of the public living in the City and its environs.

In 1702, Elizabeth Mallet, writing as a ‘him’, in Fleet Street, published London’s first daily newspaper, The Daily Courant. Within 100 years, there were 278 newspapers, journals and periodicals published in London, most of which were published in the region of Fleet Street. The exodus of the press from Fleet Street began in the 1980s, ending in 2005, with the departure of Reuters news agency. The offices of the major newspapers are no longer in one area. The Daily Telegraph is located near Victoria station; the Evening Standard is in Kensington. The Times is at London Bridge. Lawyers, accountants, the financial services industries, notably Goldman Sachs, have taken up the vacant property space.

If you walk along Fleet Street you will see several architecturally impressive buildings originally built to house the press. The Daily Telegraph Art Deco building, with its colonnade façade, bronze balconies and window frames and Egyptian ornamentation is especially impressive. Also of note is the building that was once home to the Press Association and Reuters. Edwin Lutyens, who is considered one of the greatest English architects of the 20th century, designed it. Among his many remarkable achievements is the Cenotaph in Whitehall. The ‘futuristic’ elegant black glass and chrome structure, designed by Ellis and Clarke with Sir Owen Williams for the Daily Express, is quite striking.

St Bride’s is the eighth church on the site of a series of reincarnations dating from the 6th to the 17th century. It is accepted that St Bridget (c. 451 – 525), a sixth century Irish saint from Kildare, founded the first Christian church. The skeleton of a woman who had been given a Christian burial has been found on site. Churches bearing the name of St Bridget are often found near wells, and St Bride’s well is known to have some religious significance.

In medieval times St Bride’s area was associated with several parochial guilds. Parish guilds were dedicated to supporting the worshipping life of a church. Members paid a fee and often gave property to the guilds. These guilds ensured that its members had proper funerals. Some guilds provided charitable services, such as schools or hospitals, for their members and the wider community.

The Guild of St Bride’s, established in 1375 and confirmed by a writ issued by King Edward III, is the oldest guild associated with the church. It still survives today. Members, numbering one hundred, represent a cross section of interests and activities in the region of Fleet Street. They are distinguished at services and during opening hours by their livery gown of russet cloth, trimmed with black, and the medallion they wear around their necks. Each year the Guild funds a bursary of £3000 for a one year postgraduate MA in Newspaper Journalism at City University in London.

Notable historic parishioners have included the parents of Virginia Dare who in 1587 was the first English child to be born in colonial America. The parents of one of the leaders of the Pilgrim Fathers, Edward Winslow, were married at St Bride’s. Other remarkable parishioners were poets John Dryden, John Milton and Richard Lovelace, diarist Samuel Pepys and novelist Samuel Richardson, and the French physicist Denis Papin, who, in 1679, invented the first pressure cooker! The Edwardian novelist Anthony Hope, wrote his world famous novel, The Prisoner of Zenda, while living at the rectory; his father was the vicar at the time. Hope’s novel has been adapted for stage, screen, radio and television.

Today’s incarnation is quite breathtaking for its simple, dignified beauty. It is a measure and reflection of the genius of Wren, the architect of St Paul’s Cathedral, who was commissioned to design a new church on the site after the Great Fire of 1666. This church, alas, was again destroyed when it was bombed during the Blitz on the 29 December 1940. All that remained were the steeple and the exterior walls.

The archaeological excavations that followed after the destruction confirmed the existence of a series of churches on this site. One can view many of the remains in the Crypt Museum below stairs. There we see sections of the foundation walls that formed parts of the churches of the past, Roman coins, kitchen pottery and oyster shells – the Romans relished oysters – medieval window glass and floor tiles, gravestones, 16th century clay tobacco pipes, and an iron coffin, among other items.

Iron coffins were in use during the early 19th century. Their advantage was that, unlike wooden coffins, their lids could be secured tightly. This made it difficult for ‘body snatchers’ to steal the bodies for medical research. The fresher the body, the better, the snatchers reckoned! But, alas, iron coffins did not disintegrate as fast as wooden ones, so churches charged more for them if they were used as burial caskets, as they had to wait longer for burial space to be freed. As a consequence, iron coffins had a short commercial life.

Downstairs, you will also see a restored and redesigned 14th century medieval crypt chapel, which now serves as a war memorial chapel for those who worked with Associated Newspapers and lost their lives during the the two World Wars. The Harmsworth family, a newspaper dynasty, generously funded the refurbishment. There is a plaque on the south wall revealing the names of the 58 fallen inscribed in glass. The walls, ceiling and altar are for the most part chalk white and the lighting is subdued; the chapel has a very serene air.

If you attend the fascinating tour on Tuesday afternoons – the guide I met was extremely well informed and enthusiastic - you can also visit the charnel house (not otherwise open to the public), which contains some 7000 skeletal bones. When they were removed from the cemetery during the Middle Ages – to make room for more burials – they were arranged according to type, skulls with skulls, etc., and laid out in a checkerboard pattern. Also on view are numbered cardboard boxes containing the skeletal remains of 227 people buried between the late 17th to the mid 19th centuries, whose coffins, with identifying plates, were discovered during the excavations. The fact that the coffins were buried within the church confirms that the people were of a middle to upper middle social class. Students of dentistry, medicine and forensic science come to St Bride’s to study the bones in order to find out more about the health of a stratum of people who lived in the past. A pitted skull, for example, may indicate death from venereal disease. The distorted ribs of the women are the result of wearing tight corsets. Jelena Bekvalac, the curator of osteology at the Museum of London, is leading the research.

The present restoration, completed in 1957, is considered more akin to Wren’s original designs that what transpired in 1675. Godfrey Allen, the architect, “produced a faithful re creation” according to St Bride’s. As one discovers Wren’s churches, it is apparent that although each church has its own individual characteristics architecturally, and distinctive embellishments, paintings and sculpture, there are architectural characteristics distinguishing Wren’s style. Symmetry and Wren’s love of natural light are apparent at St Bride’s; we bask in his favoured clear glass windows with round tops. This is a sharp contrast to the stained glass windows of Gothic – or neo-Gothic - churches. The black and white marble flooring is also a distinctive Wren feature. Typically Wren, the Portland stone work is ‘clean’ and the ceilings are white washed with gilding; and there is a tower in the west end with an elaborate spire atop. St Bride’s spire is a series of octagons, with open arches, diminishing in size. As the church is not easily visible from the street, the art historian and former museum director David Piper has described it as being “like a hollyhock that escapes from the pressure of the undergrowth”.

The shape of the spire is the reason why the church is referred to as the “wedding cake church”. During the late 18th century, a pastry chef, Mr Rich, who lived in Fleet Street, modelled his wedding cakes on the tiered spire.

The collegiate arrangement of the stalls (with the choir sitting in the middle of the arrangement) gives the church quite an intimate aura. (St Bride’s is renowned for its professional choir and music.)

Above the east window are ‘illusionist’ mural paintings by Glyn Jones, designed to give the flat east wall the appearance of an apse, which is extremely effective. In front of the ‘apse’ is an exquisitely carved oak reredos – a screen - that is a copy of one in the Chapel Royal at Hampton Court Palace, in Richmond.

Whether you worship in a church, a mosque or a synagogue or even if God is not your thing, visiting St Bride’s is an enriching experience. We explore the past in a beautiful setting, learning about what we did not know there was to learn about. Our spirits will be lifted not only for a few hours. Good stories await you.

After you visit St Brides, venture westwards down Fleet Street and explore Dr. Johnson’s House, an enchanting 300-year-old house in Gough Square. Johnson compiled A Dictionary of the English Language, which to this day is considered an outstanding achievement. For further information, see www.drjohnsonshouse.org.

The images of the interior of the church are courtesy of St. Bride’s church.

History

Days Out

Visiting a famous, seemingly boundless museum, housing artwork by historic and contemporary artists, can be an overwhelming and exhausting experience. There is so much to see, indeed too much to see; we feel as if we do not have enough time to appreciate all these revered treasures in one visit. We ask ourselves: do we have the patience and energy to digest it all? The galleries are crowded; time to gaze is restricted. Frankly, we may not even like what we see although we are ‘meant’ to like what we see.

In contrast, visiting smaller museums can be a refreshing and relatively more intimate experience. The small ones are unlikely to be too crowded, and their focus, be it a particular craft (such as The Fan Museum in Greenwich), person (for one try the Florence Nightingale Museum in Lambeth), theme (there is the quite unique Museum of Comedy in Bloomsbury) or local history, is always enlightening because it is narrowly focussed and often unusual. Local history, in particular, allows us to feast on snapshots of every day culture.

Even if the tiny semi-precious museum gems do hold artwork by the great, the collections are not as vast as those of the majestic ones; we have the time to absorb what we see; and one cannot help but be moved by the sense of civic pride that emanates from the writing on the exhibit panels and the enthusiastic, often volunteer, staff. It has not been easy to find the funding to keep the building open, the collection intact, and curate exhibitions.

London has many such museums, in the centre and in outlying boroughs, housed in historic houses, libraries, and municipal buildings. One such commendable discovery is the Islington Museum. It is not only home to a permanent exhibition about local history but changing exhibitions with a local link. A recent one explored Holloway Prison, a former borough institution, unfortunately now closed amidst much controversy. (Holloway Prison was not only the largest women’s prison in the United Kingdom but also all of Western Europe.) The current exhibition, Raids, Rations and Rifles – Islington during the First World War runs until 15 January 2019. It is particularly relevant as Armistice Day, Remembrance Day and Remembrance Sunday fall on the same date in 2018, and, in fact, November 11, 2018 is the centenary of the armistice when the fighting in World War I ceased. Remembering is all the more poignant because of these coincidences.

What we learn is locally distinctive, not the prime ‘stuff’ of the capital’s Imperial War Museum, or the National Army Museum, where political strategy, weaponry and military logistics are prime topics in a national and international context. Moreover, what is local may inspire us to find out more about its significance in a wider historical and social context.

Perhaps our food banks, for example, could be developed to resemble the National Kitchens that were established by the British government during World War I in light of the shortage of food, especially imported food? They were intended to feed people inexpensively and economically. People of all ages and from all walks of life would eat in what were restaurants for “ordinary people in ordinary circumstances”. While standing on line, they would be served by volunteer workers and then eat their meals while sitting at long communal tables. The fare was meant to be nourishing, certainly not adventurous; food wastage during food preparation was unforgiveable.

Food production was also undertaken. Cornish pasties, for example, were made so that they could be ‘taken into the field’. In Islington, a National Kitchen, set up in 1918, made black puddings. It used the by-products of the cattle and livestock brought to the slaughterhouses at the borough’s Caledonian cattle and livestock market. Black pudding is traditionally made with fresh blood, usually pig’s blood, but possibly cow’s or sheep’s blood, some form of fat and rusk, such as oats or barley, and seasoning. The mixture is then put into a casing, beef intestine for example, and boiled. This can be fried or baked. Making a pudding with animals’ blood ensures that the blood does not go to waste. Indeed, blood pudding is a good source of protein, zinc and iron. Nowadays, oddly enough, blood pudding is included in many trendy British brunch menus.

Two years earlier a fair was held at the market site to raise money for the Allied Wounded Soldiers Relief Fund, a charity that helped to establish hospitals and provided money for ambulances. Two of the organisers were Harry Gordon Selfridge of the department store fame and the novelist Arnold Bennett. Among the sale items were 2,220 tons of coal and a champion British bulldog. At Mrs Arnold Bennett’s stall one could find books autographed by GK Chesterton, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Joseph Conrad. There were 25,000 people attending and £30,000 was raised, which in our time is the equivalent of £1.5 million ($1.95 million)!

Various enterprises in Islington contributed distinctively to the war effort. Exploring the variety of contributions reveals much about how people lived in the past.

The Whitbread Brewery in Chiswell Street was proud that some of its handsome and muscly draught horses, over one hundred – the Whitbread Shires - were commandeered for service. In common with other horses commandeered, they laboured behind the lines. Horses could move easily through mud, transporting medical staff, the wounded, supplies and artillery on wagons. Sadly, none of the Whitbread Shire horses ever returned. Disease, poor nourishment and hygiene, dire weather conditions, and the strain of the relentless work rather than gunfire caused many fatalities. In 1991, the Clerkenwell stables closed and the remaining horses were sent to a permanent home in Paddock Wood in Kent. Incidentally, many thousands of American horses were shipped to Britain to help with the war effort.

Dove Brothers, a large, well respected construction firm in Cloudesley Place, known for its civil engineering projects, shops, offices, Anglican churches and non-conformist chapels, turned its production over to producing wooden propeller blades. (Metal ones were manufactured after the war.) Both men and women worked at the site doing what was a highly skilled job. Workers had to ensure that the angles of the blade were shaped and balanced exactly such that the planes would work most efficiently.
Municipal buildings were used in unusual ways to help the war effort. In 1917, The Bank of England took over the vacant St. Luke’s Asylum for the Mentally Ill in Old Street so that it could be used as printing works; war bonds were among its publications. The first such bond was printed by King George V during a Royal visit to the works in December 1917. Selling war bonds to the population was a means of raising money for the war effort; good patriots should show their support by buying war bonds.

The North Library in Manor Gardens became a hospital annex to the adjacent Great Northern Hospital for war casualties. It contained 80 hospital beds; its gardens were used for huts to house hospital orderlies. By 1919, 2,045 men had received medical and surgical treatment at the annex. The Central and West Libraries became recruiting stations. The Ministry of Food used the South Library for the Local Food Control Committee which regulated the supply of food.

The borough was also home to anti-war movements. In 1916 and 1917 unsympathetic and violent protesters disrupted meetings for pacifists at the Brotherhood Church in Southgate Road. The most eventful clash was after a meeting attended by 250 delegates, including the philosopher, historian and pacifist Bertrand Russell. It was sparked by the nearly 8,000 who gathered outside. In spite of police presence, delegates were physically assaulted and much church furniture was destroyed. Several months later the church was set alight and so damaged that no more meetings could be held there. Elsewhere in the borough the North London Herald League held mass anti-war meetings, one of which was addressed by the suffragette Sylvia Pankhurst. These meetings were regularly attacked by the members of the Anti-German Union who referred to the protestors as "peace cranks". One local notable resident and peace activist was Baron Archibald Fenner Brockway (1888–1988). He became a Labour MP for Leyton East in London, and years later the MP for Eton and Slough. Brockway spent time in the local Pentonville Prison for refusing to pay a fine for distributing anti-conscription leaflets. Later Brockway became a founder member of the movements War on Want and the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament.

Islington is proud of the fact that the oldest regiment in the British Army, The Honourable Artillery Company (HAC), incorporated by Royal Charter in 1537 by King Henry VIII, was located in the part of City Road that lies in the borough. Its battalions greatly contributed to the war effort. Many of its members received military awards. Two notable members were the actors Nigel Bruce, known for his portrayal of Dr Watson with Basil Rathbone as Sherlock Holmes in a series of Hollywood films, and John Laurie, well known for his character Private Frazer in the Dad’s Army television comedy.

In the glass topped table displays in the Islington Museum are a variety of war memorabilia, including one soldier’s photo album. Soldiers were banned from taking photographs after 1915 in order to stop the British from seeing horrific images of war. This serving photographer smuggled his film in a hollowed out shaving stick. There are medals and cap badges on display and also a newsletter from the internment camp for 750 German and Austrian internees in Cornwallis Road. You can view a charming film montage showing various local patriotic events taking place during the war such as a garden party for the wounded. Quite a few of the people look very dour!

After the ceasefire, many celebrations took place in the streets of Islington; in the borough there are three prominent war memorials. Nearly one million people lost their lives in the war and almost 10,000 were linked in some way to Islington. Sadly, the residents of the borough experienced great economic hardship after the war, and although welfare programmes had begun to improve the lives of many, the darkening clouds of World War Two were threatening the advent of a stormy future.

As a resident of Islington, it was gratifying to view the exhibition; I have often walked past the sites we learn about in the Museum. Indeed, strolling through the borough alerts one to another distinguishing venture related to World War I: the plaques installed in many Islington streets, thanks to a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund, listing those service men and women who lived in the street and died in World War I.

The exhibition is a poignant and timely reminder of the sacrifices made by the people of Islington and elsewhere in order to bring peace to all corners of the world. We will remember them and all those who have fought and continue to fight in the spirit of humanity.

Article by Jenny Kingsley.

There is another fascinating museum in Islington which is well worth a special trip: the London Canal Museum, where you can see inside a narrow boat cabin and learn about the people who lived and worked the waterways and the horses that pulled the boats. The museum is housed in a former ice warehouse, which was built in 1862 for Carlo Gatti, a famous ice cream maker. There are exhibits exploring the history of the ice trade and ice cream. Visit www.londoncanalmuseum.org.uk for further information.

Images credits: Islington Local History Centre

Top image: Great Northern Hospital annexe at North Library, Manor Gardens. Last troops leaving the library in March 1919.

Middle image: The Honourable Artillery Company on a recruitment march in Finsbury Square, 1914.

Days Out & Venues

London

History

Days Out

As Meghan, new Duchess of Sussex and American in Britain royal, settles into married life with Prince Harry at Kensington Palace, isn’t it high time to enjoy a royal venue of your own this summer?

Whether you’re new to the UK or have been here since the Queen’s Coronation, visiting castles, historic houses and stately homes is an unmissable and uniquely British experience. From perfectly restored fairytale fortresses to crumbling medieval wrecks where much is left to the imagination, these are attractions you definitely can’t get stateside.

For the ultimate royal day out we heartily recommend a visit to Sussex’s Herstmonceux Castle for the annual England’s Medieval Festival. Step back in time and experience its living history village, battle re-enactments, jousting, falconry displays and mud wrestling. It’s a safe bet your kids will never forget the thrill of seeing knights duelling on horseback. Have a go at arrowmaking, blacksmith forging, axe throwing or archery. There’s also real ale, medieval munchies and plenty of timely music. And did we mention the moonlit cinema playing medieval themed-classics on a giant screen?

A particularly brilliant castle for families is Hever Castle in Kent. Over 700 years old and pure storybook, Hever is the historic home of the Boleyn family and reputed to be where King Henry VIII courted the second of his six ill-fated wives, Anne Boleyn. It has every enchantment you’d expect in a perfect palace: turrets and battlements, a double moat, knights in armour, weapons and instruments of torture on display, majestic gardens and a splashing water maze. Hever holds a popular summer programme of events including musical theatre, comedy nights, jousting tournaments and Knights and Princesses School.

Blenheim Palace’s Great Court is the stunning setting for Nocturne Live concerts. A starry lineup includes Elvis Costello, Gary Barlow and Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds. Blenheim has a long and noble history, most famously as the birthplace of Sir Winston Churchill and his illustrious ancestors, and is renowned for its gilded state rooms, water terraces and gorgeous landscaping.

In early September, old and new world traditions will unite in the opulent surrounds of Stanford Hall stately home for the first Long Road Country, Americana and Roots Festival. Stanford Hall has housed the Cave family since the 15th century, and this year will play host to Lee Ann Womack, Angaleena Presley, The Shires, Bob Harris, the BBC Introducing Stage and dozens more country, bluegrass and folk performers from the US and UK.

Summer

Days Out & Venues

UK

History

Days Out

As well as those eagerly awaited royal nuptials, Spring 2018 marks the 72nd anniversary of Prime Minister Winston Churchill’s 1946 ‘special relationship’ speech, in which he publicly bravo-ed the close US-UK cultural and historical ties. Although that relationship has been celebrated, tested, challenged and changed over the decades since, there is no doubting the many strong and enduring
American Air Museum, Duxford, copyright IWM
British-American connections.

Whether you have an academic or more
personal interest in World War II US-UK links, the American Air Museum near Cambridge is a highly recommended must-see. With striking, award-winning architecture by Norman Foster, the Museum houses the largest collection of American aircraft outside the USA and is a fitting tribute to the 30,000 Americans who died after flying from UK air bases during the war.

You can also pay a visit to the nearby Cambridge American Cemetery and Memorial, where thousands of American military personnel are buried or honoured. This includes over 5,000 names engraved in stone on the Walls of the Missing. And it’s always worth a detour to Cambridge itself, where we recommend a pint at The Eagle, the city’s oldest pub and steeped in historic charm. Be sure to check out the pub’s unique RAF Bar, where American and British fighter pilots socialised before setting off on their dangerous missions. Although many never did return, their names and moving messages are etched forever into the ceiling with Zippo lighters, candles and lipstick.

There are lots of other memorials to noted Americans dotted around the UK, including Pocahontas, Tom Paine and Whistler. You’ll also find statues of FDR and Ike in Grosvenor Square, Abraham Lincoln in Parliament Square, George Washington outside the National Gallery, and Martin Luther King as one of the 20th century Christian martyrs carved above the doorway of Westminster Abbey. Virginia Quay Settlers Monument in Blackwall, East London, remembers the 105 “adventurers”– men, women and children - who sailed from here in 1606 in three small ships and went on to found Jamestown, the first English colony in North America.

Days Out & Venues

UK

History

Days Out

Make a date with history as 2018 Britain celebrates a bevy of famous birthdays and anniversaries.

Classical music lovers will be saluting the 350th birthday of Baroque composer Francois Couperin, the 200th birthday of Romantic era’s Claude Debussy and the centenary of American composer and conductor Leonard Bernstein (West Side Story, Candide), as well as that of his peerless choreographic collaborator, Jerome Robbins.

Rock and pop fans will fete Ariana Grande and Miley Cyrus as they turn 25, Kylie Minogue, Bono, Will Smith and Shaggy at 50, Madonna at 60, and Mick Jagger, the grand old man of rock, who will be 75. We’ll be fondly remembering the late Prince and Michael Jackson; both would have turned 60 this year.

Two hundred years ago, in 1818, young author Mary Shelley gave life to Frankenstein’s monster. Feel free to honour the occasion by re-reading her novel, taking part in Dorset’s Shelley-Frankenstein Festival, or seeing for yourself how the story’s been changed— just a titch— in Mel Brooks’ hilarious West End musical, Young Frankenstein.

2018 also marks 100 years since women in Britain first gained the right to vote. Amongst many centenary events saluting Women’s Suffrage will be a major exhibition at the Houses of Parliament, a feminist film season at Barbican Cinema and Old Vic Theatre’s world premiere of Sylvia, a dance, hip-hop, soul and funk modern musical celebrating the life of Sylvia Pankhurst and her pivotal role in the passionate campaign for women’s rights.

Last but by no means least, 1968—50 years ago— was a landmark year at the movies, release year for a feast of films now considered classics: Oliver, 2001: A Space Odyssey, the Odd Couple, Funny Girl, Yellow Submarine, Chitty-Chitty Bang-Bang and Rosemary’s Baby, to name a diverse handful. Expect no shortage of Golden Anniversary screenings, fan events and limited-edition merchandise for each.

2001: A Space Odyssey, will be particularly honoured. It was groundbreaking at the time and is still widely considered the best sci-fi movie ever made, with astonishing cinematography and music, Oscar-winning special effects and memorable back-talking computer, Hal. Diehard fans certainly won’t want to miss The Southbank Centre’s exciting anniversary screening in April with live orchestra.